(REUTERS) – Defending champion and top seed Serena Williams bombarded Slovakia’s Dominika Cibulkova with some venomous serves to reach the Wimbledon fourth round after a 6-0, 7-5 victory.
On another scorching day at the All England Club, Williams raced through the first set against an overawed Cibulkova in just 18 minutes before encountering stiffer resistance from the world number 46 in the second.
The three-time winner, no doubt pleased to be back on Centre Court after grumbling about being banished to Court Two for her second round match, produced one thundering serve after another, firing down 20 aces in all.
Williams will next face former champion Maria Sharapova, whose ear-splitting shrieks deafened Wimbledon as she needed all of her weapons to break the dogged resilience of Czech Barbora Zahlavova Strycova 7-5, 6-3.
After the opening four games went against serve, Sharapova turned up the decibel level several notches as she tried to get a foothold in the match.
It took the Russian 16th seed another eight games to break Zahlavova Strycova, who took out her anger by slamming her racquet to the ground twice.
Zahlavova Strycova’s resistance crumbled in the second and she bowed out after the Russian again shattered the peace by sealing victory with a screaming ace.
Third seed Caroline Wozniacki overcame a battling performance from fellow teenager Anastasia Pavlyuchenkova to beat the Russian 7-5, 6-4.
The 19-year-old Dane, who also reached the same stage of the tournament last year before bowing out, was never at her best but eventually outslugged her younger rival from the baseline.
Pavlyuchenkova, 18, had her moments, breaking early in the second set but could not sustain the momentum as she lost to Wozniacki for the third time this year.
Petra Kvitova awaits Wozniacki tomorrow, after the unseeded Czech, who had never won a match on grass before this week survived an erratic performance by 14th seed Victoria Azarenka to win 7-5, 6-0.
Chinese ninth seed Li Na booked her place in the fourth round, for the second time, after easing past Australia’s Anastasia Rodionova 6-1, 6-3.
Li be aiming to match her best performance at Wimbledon with a place in the quarter-finals when she takes on seventh seed Ageniezska Radwanska, the Pole also easing into the last 16 with a 6-3, 6-1 win over Italian 32nd seed Sara Errani.
Czech Klara Zakopalova reached the fourth round of a Grand Slam for the first time when she dismissed 10th seeded Flavia Pennetta 6-2, 6-3.
Zakopalova had only been in the third round of a Slam once before, back at the Australian Open in 2003, and will next face Estonia’s Kaia Kanepi, who beat 31st seed Alexandra Dulgheru 6-1, 6-2.